When I was calling on retailers back in the 1980s there were ‘food stamps’ which were actually voucher booklets that the poor used. These vouchers were only for food, but certain merchants would give cash for the vouchers so that the poor could purchase other goods. Merchants gave less than face value, of course. It was seen as humiliating for the poor to have to use those vouchers, so now there is something called an “EBT” (stands for ‘electronic benefits transfer’ I think) card, which looks like a credit/debit card.

This way, the poor are not stigmatized or embarrassed by being seen to be living on charity. I don’t know how they get goods not on the approved list, but I assume that there is still a way.